The backbone of these recipes is the same: onions browned properly, whole spices bloomed in hot fat, and tomatoes cooked down until the oil separates. Get those right and the rest follows.
All 4 recipes
Chana Masala
North Indian chickpea curry, sharp with tomato and finished with a squeeze of lemon. Vegan without trying, and better on the second day.
Dal Tadka
Soft yellow lentils finished with tadka - spices bloomed in hot ghee and poured over at the very last second, so they hit the table still crackling.
Butter Chicken
Murgh makhani, invented in Delhi to use up leftover tandoori chicken. Mild, tomato-rich and faintly sweet - the curry to cook for people who say they don't like curry.
Palak Paneer
Cubes of fresh cheese in a bright spinach gravy. Blanching the spinach and shocking it in ice water is what keeps the colour green instead of army drab.